Improved Test of Lorentz Invariance in Electrodynamics

Peter Wolf (1, 2) , Michael E. Tobar (3) , Sébastien Bize (1) , André Clairon (1) , André N. Luiten (3) , Giorgio Santarelli (1)

1 SYRTE - Systèmes de Référence Temps Espace
2 BIPM - Bureau International des Poids et Mesures
3 FSM - School of Physics

We report new results of a test of Lorentz invariance based on the comparison of a cryogenic sapphire microwave resonator and a hydrogen maser. The experimental results are shown together with an extensive analysis of systematic effects. Previously, this experiment has set the most stringent constraint on Kennedy-Thorndike type violations of Lorentz invariance. In this work we present new data and interpret our results in the general Lorentz violating extension of the standard model of particle physics (SME). Within the photon sector of the SME, our experiment is sensitive to seven SME parameters. We marginally improve present limits on four of these, and by a factor 7 to 10 on the other three.

Domaines: Physique des Hautes Energies - Phénoménologie [hep-ph]; Relativité Générale et Cosmologie Quantique [gr-qc]

Peter Wolf, Michael E. Tobar, Sébastien Bize, André Clairon, André N. Luiten, et al.. Improved Test of Lorentz Invariance in Electrodynamics. 2004. ⟨hal-00002232v2⟩